LIVE – War in Ukraine: Power outages in the country after Russian strikes

GEORGIA

Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili is at risk of death if not treated properly, doctors warned on Friday.

He was transferred to the hospital last year after a hunger strike against his arrest for abuse of power.

ALL CUTOUTS TO THE COUNTRY

Ukraine’s electricity operator Ukrenergo warned on Monday that emergency power cuts will be needed across Ukraine as the country grapples with the fallout from new Russian strikes.

“According to the results of the bombings (…), in order to maintain the balance between the production and consumption of electricity, a system of emergency interruptions will be established in all regions of Ukraine. Electricity will be given priority to the basic infrastructure,” Ukrenergo announced on Telegram.

THE INTERVIEW

The European Union has decided to set a maximum limit of 60 dollars per barrel of Russian oil from Monday and to impose an embargo on its transportation by sea.

According to the president of the Union of French Oil Industries, Olivier Gantoi, we should not be afraid of fuel price increases or even shortages for now.

TRAPPED MAIL

Three letters with “animal eyes” addressed to Ukrainian diplomatic missions in Spain were seized on Monday, days after a bomb blast at the Ukrainian embassy in the country, a police source said.

“The security services of the postal services discovered and seized three suspicious letters addressed to the Embassy of Ukraine in Madrid, the consulates of the country in Barcelona and Malaga this morning,” the source said, adding that these envelopes “did not contain explosives.” “, but “animal eyes”.

“According to their characteristics, these shipments are similar to those received last Friday by the Embassy of Ukraine in Madrid, as well as other consulates and embassies of the country in other European cities,” the source continued.

COUNTER ATTACK ON UKRAINE

On Monday, two Russian airbases in the center of the country were targeted by Ukrainian drones, and three people were killed, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.

On Monday morning, “Kyiv regime (…) attempted to attack Diaguilevo airbase in Ryazan region and Enguels airbase in Saratov region with Soviet-made drones.” According to the same source, three Russian soldiers were “mortally wounded” in these attacks.

UN

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, who is on a visit to Ukraine, took refuge in an underground shelter in Kiev on Monday due to rocket attacks, the UN said. This is the first visit of the High Commissioner to Ukraine after the Russian invasion that began on February 24.

In a short video he sent to AFP, Volker Türk said, “On my second day in Kyiv, I was going to meet with human rights defenders and I had to move this meeting here, to this shelter (…) because the sirens sounded.”

“And while we’re having this discussion here in this shelter, there’s been a wave of missile attacks against Ukraine, some of them landing near Kyiv. You can imagine what that means for the population. It’s almost become the new normal, but it’s a huge impact on civilians. and it should be stopped,” he added.

ANSWER

Ukraine’s anti-aircraft defenses “shot down” most of the rockets fired by the Russian military on Monday, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy assured, adding that several hits were recorded and water and electricity were cut off.

“The air defense shot down most of the missiles. The energy workers have already started to restore power. Our people never surrender,” Zelensky said on Instagram.

AIR BASE

A Kremlin spokesman said Vladimir Putin had been briefed on Monday about the incidents at two Russian airbases in the central Russian provinces of Saratov and Ryazan.

“The president regularly receives information from the relevant services about everything that is happening,” Dmitry Peskov told the press without giving further details and said that additional questions should be addressed to the Ministry of Defense.

According to a number of Russian media, explosions took place at two airbases, including one intended for strategic aviation, which is used for strikes against Ukraine, according to Kiev.

CRIMEA BRIDGE

Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the partially destroyed Crimea bridge in October.

Russian television channels broadcast images of Mr. Putin driving a car, claiming to be on this bridge that connects the Ukrainian peninsula with Russian territory. The viaduct was damaged in October by a powerful explosion that Russian authorities attributed to Ukrainian forces.

WATER AND ELECTRICITY HAVE BEEN DISCONNECTED

Officials said that water and electricity have been cut off in a number of cities of the country after Russia’s attacks on the entire territory of Ukraine. This applies to Kryvyi Rig in central Ukraine, Odessa (in the south), Mykolaiv (in the south) and Sumy Oblast (in the northeast).

TWO PEOPLE DIED IN A CRASH IN THE SOUTHERN REGION OF UKRAINE

As anti-aircraft sirens sounded across Ukraine, authorities announced that two people had been killed in a strike in the country’s south. The deputy head of the Ukrainian presidential administration said on Telegram that at least two people died and three people, including a child, were injured as a result of the strikes.

WEATHER Alert

According to Ukraine, a large air attack was carried out by Russia. Weather warnings are sounded in several regions of the country, including in Kyiv, where strong explosions were heard. “The missiles have already been launched,” Air Force spokesman Yuri Ihnat said. There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. “Don’t ignore the warning,” Andriy Yermak, chief of staff of the Ukrainian president, said.

FAKE HUMANITARIAN CONVOY

Spanish authorities have announced that they have dismantled a major drug-trafficking ring accused of concealing the secret in a fake humanitarian convoy to Ukraine to ship cannabis to several European countries.

According to the Spanish Civil Guard, a total of 30 people were arrested in the operation in several cities in the southern region of Andalusia, including Seville, Malaga and Granada. The Guardia Civil said in a statement that the suspects “received their supplies from cannabis plantations throughout Andalusia”.

In order to export their goods, they “hid them in cardboard boxes” and presented them as “food and humanitarian aid for Ukraine,” the statement added.

THE KREMLIN WANTS TO CONTINUE THE ATTACK

The Kremlin assured on Monday that the limit decided by Western countries on the price of Russian oil will have no effect on Moscow’s attack on Ukraine. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that the Russian economy “has all the necessary capabilities” to finance a military attack.

“Such measures will have no effect on interference,” he insisted. Nevertheless, the Kremlin spokesman warned against the “destabilization” of the world energy market and warned of the consequences of this price increase.

ZELENSKY WAS NAMED PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR

The President of Ukraine was chosen as the “personality of the year” by the “Financial Times” newspaper. Vladimir Zelensky, the leader of the resistance in Ukraine, which has been at war with Russia for nine months, commented that “I am more responsible than brave” and “I hate to let people down.” Compared to Winston Churchill by the FT, the Ukrainian leader said he missed fishing for carp in the Dnieper River with his son more.

THE KREMLIN STRENGTHENS ITSELF IN THE DIGITAL SECTOR

Alexei Kudrin, a close friend of Vladimir Putin, has announced that he has joined the Yandex group, the pearl of Russia’s new technologies. “I accepted the offer from Yandex to become a business development consultant,” the former finance minister said on Telegram, adding that his job would be “to ensure the company’s long-term development in all markets, including internationally.”

Russia’s new technology sector has been hit hard by Western sanctions against Russia since its invasion of Ukraine, and the Kremlin is trying to devise a strategy to replace the Western giants and their products. For this reason, it is strengthening its control over this sector in the midst of the conflict in Ukraine.

SITUATION UPDATE

Find the top stories from the past 24 hours on the conflict that has erupted in Ukraine since the Russian invasion.

RUSSIAN OIL

The Russian oil price cap, which was adopted by the EU, G7 countries and Australia and is due to take effect on Monday, aims to limit Russia’s revenues while ensuring it continues to supply the world market.

The activation of the cap coincides with the EU’s embargo on seaborne Russian oil coming into effect – months after the US and Canada already imposed embargoes.

However, Russia is the world’s second-largest exporter of crude oil, and without the ceiling it would be easy to find new buyers at market prices. Therefore, the agreed mechanism means that only oil sold at or below $60 per barrel can continue to be supplied, and companies based in the EU, G7 and Australia will then be barred from providing services. maritime transport (trade, cargo, insurance, ship owners, etc.).